NFL commissioner: Canton will be part of centennial plans; league plans presence here, too

Monday

Aug 7, 2017 at 6:35 AM

Roger Goodell left Canton impressed by what the Hall of Fame and partner IRG are building in the form of Johnson Controls Hall of Fame Village.

Todd Porter CantonRep.com Special Projects Editor @toddporter

CANTON For more than two hours Roger Goodell sat in a front-row seat at Zimmermann Symphony Center and listened to David Baker’s “State of the Hall” speech. It is Baker’s annual address to the NFL commissioner, Pro Football Hall of Fame Board of Trustees, Hall of Famers and NFL owners. It is an update on where the Hall has gone over the past year and where it is going.

Baker’s speech lasted nearly two hours. Goodell laughed when it was pointed out that Baker’s “State of the Hall” speech was more than twice as long as the most recent State of the Union.

“David might have more to say,” Goodell said.

Maybe so.

The New York Times sent a reporter here to write about Johnson Controls Hall of Fame Village, which started as a $500 million project and has grown to $800 million, and the impact is could have on the region. The Associated Press over the weekend moved a national story about Village plans.

The buzz created here doesn’t surprise Goodell. Canton has gone global under Baker’s leadership; it was one of the reasons Baker was hired to lead the Hall of Fame.

The NFL commissioner loved everything he heard from Baker. So much so, Goodell said the National Football League will have a presence on the campus of Johnson Controls Hall of Fame Village once it is complete.

Baker, the Hall’s president and CEO, took the Canton-based Hall of Fame brand around the world this summer. There was a trip to Israel that led to a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. At about the same time Baker and a contingent visited with Netanyahu, another group representing the Hall had a private audience with Pope Francis at the Vatican.

Just when Goodell thought he had seen it all, billionaire investor Warren Buffett attended Friday night’s Gold Jacket dinner and sang a version of “My Way” with Paul Anka.

“David is a leader, and he’s someone who’s passionate about what he’s going,” Goodell said during an exclusive interview with The Canton Repository. “His impact is enormous. … He really is an extraordinary person. He believes so much in the values and what the Hall stands for. It not about a building for him. It’s about making this community better, and, frankly, using this stage to represent all the important values that our Hall of Famers do, I think this community does and I know the NFL does.”

Goodell soon will decide where the 2018 NFL Draft will be hosted (likely Dallas). Then the NFL will make decisions on the 2019 and 2020 drafts. Then there is the NFL’s centennial, for which the league has hired a full-time coordinator and has had a committee in place for more than a year to make plans. Super Bowls, Baker said, are celebrated every year. A centennial celebration? Once in a lifetime.

Baker has made no secret of his desire to host the 2019 and possibly the 2020 drafts in Canton or Northeast Ohio. The 2019 draft would kick off the start of the league's 100th season, and 2020 would be the centennial celebration.

“We haven’t made any decision yet,” Goodell said about the drafts. “What we’ve seen is an evolution of the draft, and it has grown, and its impact. It’s really something other communities have seen. … That’s exciting for us. It is something we can share with other communities.

“I have no doubt Canton has the passion. I have no doubt they have the facilities. What we have to work on is how does Canton execute on that, and how do they present that and do it with a Canton flare, but also something fans would appreciate.”

Dress rehearsal

Perhaps some of those questions were answered Friday night. Goodell attended a star-studded party that was hosted by Class of 2017 enshrinee and Dallas Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones. While it was Jones who funded the gala, which reportedly cost more than $10 million, the party was hosted in Stark County at Glenmoor Country Club. Pop star Justin Timberlake played a 90-minute concert, and the night came off without a hitch.

Canton and Stark County can execute a grand plan.

Baker and Hall of Fame officials have partnered with the Cleveland Browns to submit a joint application for future drafts in Northeast Ohio. Browns Owner Jimmy Haslam now is a member of the Hall’s Board of Trustees.

“The partnership we have with the Hall is working well,” Haslam said. “We’ll be working more on the draft application, and I have a cautious optimism the draft will be here for one of those years” in 2019 or 2020.

The relationship between the Browns and Hall of Fame seems to be stronger than in previous years.

“With us being in Cleveland and them being in Canton, it’s a natural partnership,” Haslam said. “David and his group have done a tremendous job, and we want to help in any way we can.”

Beyond the NFL Draft, the league’s centennial celebration in 2020 might be even more important. Baker has alluded to the centennial as Canton's and Northeast Ohio’s “Super Bowl” because the impact could be comparable to hosting the NFL's championship game. Johnson Controls Hall of Fame Village is expected to be finished for the centennial in 2020.

Canton is the birthplace of the NFL, and Goodell said recognizing that during the centennial is important.

“We’re certainly going to have Canton as a big part of those plans,” Goodell said. “We have not developed those plans yet, and we are feverishly working on them. At some point soon we will start announcing them, but we really want to make this a special celebration, and Canton will be a big part of that.”

Goodell watched Thursday night’s Hall of Fame Game between Dallas and Arizona at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium. The 23,000-seat venue was completed with a cost north of $150 million. Baker said with 20,000 more seats, the stadium could host an NFL regular-season game.

“There’s a lot of possibilities. I’m not going to point to any, but we’ve got a lot on the table, and we’re not taking anything off the table right now,” Goodell said.

Goodell is particularly interested in Legends Landing and the Player Care Center at the Village. It will be an integrated health care facility for retired NFL players.

“We’ve done relationships with facilities that can provide care for the families and the individuals that need special care, and to do it here in Canton, Ohio, I think that’s going to be fantastic,” Goodell said. “It’s going to make a real difference and that’s what we’re after.”